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Edge of the Cedars State Park Museum, UT

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Edge of the Cedars State Park Museum

The Edge of the Cedars State Park Museum site is widely accepted as a prehistoric agricultural village occupied between approximately 750 A.D. and 1220 A.D., home to various ancient cultures including Ancestral Puebloans/Anasazi, Navajo, and Utes. Historians say that cowboys from nearby Bluff, Utah, were camping near the area in the late 1800s and named the scenic site due to its naturally occurring boundary on the edge of a forested region leading to a barren section to the south. Despite its name, the trees found in the forest here are actually Utah junipers, not cedars.

The Utah Navajo Development Council donated the 6.65-acre site to the Utah Division of State Parks and Recreation in 1974, and the Edge of the Cedars State Park Museum is now listed on both the national and state registers of historic places and is a popular attraction for those interested in Native American history and heritage.

The family-friendly museum complex houses the largest collection of Ancestral Puebloan pottery and relics in southeastern Utah, including an excavated and restored kiva (a partially subterranean ceremonial room within a pueblo), giving visitors a glimpse into the ancient life of Anasazi lifestyle and architecture. As you travel through the park, you will get to check out petroglyphs, Puebloan basketry, jewelry, pottery, tools, a Horse Rock Ruin basketry collection, a Macaw feather sash, and a loom from the middle of the first millennium excavated from San Juan County. The archaeological repository, with its archives and a research library, is used to house most of the archaeological materials excavated from public lands in southeast Utah.

Guided tours of the ancient site are available, during which you will see the archaeological exhibits, walk or hike the interpretive nature trail, and visit the restored dwellings, exhibit halls, auditorium, and gift shop. There are no facilities for food in the park, but all services are available in the city of Blanding.

To get to the park, follow signs on U.S. 191 a few miles from Blanding. Visitors must purchase a State Parks pass or pay the day-use fee of $5. For Utah seniors 62 and older, and children, the fee is $3, and children five and under can visit for free. Edge of the Cedars State Park Museum is open year-round from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (6 p.m. during summer months) and is closed on holidays. No camping is available.

Add this historic spot to your itinerary if you’re interested in adventures through history!